


sephiran is (not) waiting

by Rethira



Category: Fire Emblem: Soen no Kiseki/Akatsuki no Megami | Fire Emblem Path of Radiance/Radiant Dawn
Genre: Amputation, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-03
Updated: 2018-12-03
Packaged: 2019-09-06 11:20:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 738
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16831615
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rethira/pseuds/Rethira
Summary: (sephiran died in the tower. but lehran still lives)





	sephiran is (not) waiting

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [zelgius is waiting](https://archiveofourown.org/works/6066301) by [Rethira](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Rethira/pseuds/Rethira). 



> an anon asked me to make sephiran happy and miraculously, i did!

he doesn’t ask about zelgius. all of sephiran’s desires have been stripped from him, one by one; he is bereft of all he has been these past few years- oh. except sanaki walks by his side, silent. a child no longer

(she looks so like altina now it frightens him)

as they pass deghinsea’s corpse, the young new king of dragons leaves them. he weeps over his father. so fragile, truly, so new to all the horrors the world will visit upon him. deghinsea forsook grief centuries ago; to him, it had been the only way to cope with the passing years

(oh, and such _revenge_ the world visited upon him. first his wife, then his daughter, then his son. deghinsea may have played at being untouched but- but lehran is no fool)

ike leads them further down. he murmurs softly to his- his beloved. lehran is not blind. the branded boy is… as zelgius was. micaiah walks between rafiel and _her_ beloved. the wolf at rafiel’s side glances back occasionally at lehran, but seems satisfied whenever she sees sanaki still beside him

he does not speak. he does not listen to other conversation. he thinks-

(sephiran died in the tower. but lehran still lives)

as they near the floor where sephiran left zelgius, lehran’s steps slow. lehran does not want to see zelgius’ corpse. bad enough that he has seen alondite, wielded by another, and known that he left zelgius to his death - _necessary,_ he’d said at the time, but now…

and then they are there-

micaiah strides past ike, and sanaki starts into motion only a second later, jumping down the last few stairs. they both clatter across the room and micaiah shouts sternly, “sephiran!”

he jerks into motion like a puppet on strings, hardly seeing the ground beneath his feet - the branded boy at ike’s side says something, but lehran doesn’t hear it, blind and deaf to everything except _zelgius_

still breathing. there’s blood on his lips, dripping from his- what’s left of his arm. he blinks once, twice and then he sees lehran and he croaks, “sephiran,” reaching out with is other arm

“don’t speak,” lehran urges, shaking his head and falling to his knees beside zelgius. he cups zelgius’ cheek, murmurs, “i’m here, i’m here”

he murmurs soothing nonsense while micaiah and sanaki heal zelgius as much as they can. his hands shake as he touches zelgius’ face, as much to reassure himself as zelgius. they decide to leave the armour behind - a conversation had mostly over zelgius’ head. lehran says hardly a thing except, “yes, of course,” and if sanaki is surprised that lehran knows where to find all the fastenings she hides it well

shucked of the black knight’s armour, zelgius is much easier to haul to his feet. he still staggers and sways, and micaiah tuts and calls for people to carry him while lehran fits zelgius’ remaining arm over his shoulder and… breathes out

(there are no volunteers to carry him, understandably. micaiah presses two dragon laguz into service, and even they look uncomfortable)

* * *

sanaki lets lehran go to serenes, and says nothing about him taking zelgius with him. a one armed general has no future in begnion, and… they both know where zelgius’ loyalties lie. she smiles as he leaves, small and tight, the way altina did the last time he saw her

(one day, perhaps, lehran will tell her how much she reminds him of altina)

the herons don’t exactly _welcome_ lehran and zelgius - reyson’s wings are held wide and aggressive, like a hawk’s, and leanne is… not like the herons lehran used to know - but they don’t turn them away either. even so, lehran chooses to live apart from them, and he and zelgius make their home somewhat nearer the mountains

there is a stream and plenty of trees, and only zelgius to see lehran’s unbound wings most days. he dare not fly with them to begin with - they’ve atrophied being so long hidden. but it feels good to have the sun on them, the wind in his feathers. zelgius combs his fingers through them, humming old lullabies and love songs

(do they deserve this? no. lehran knows what he has done, the deaths he is responsible for. and he brought zelgius into this as well - stole zelgius' heart and led him down this path. but for now… for now the world is giving him happiness)


End file.
